Fire Festival
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The Fire Festival is an annual professional wrestling round-robin tournament held by Pro Wrestling ZERO1-MAX to determine the top wrestler in the promotion, typically contested in late July/early August. In addition to ZERO1-MAX members, it has frequently included outside stars, including 2003 winner Satoshi Kojima, Kensuke Sasaki and TAKA Michinoku.
Since 2002, it has featured two blocks, each with five participants, with the two block winners facing off in the final to determine the overall champion. The 2001 Fire Festival only featured four in each block, but held the same principle. The winner of the tournament is presented with the Fire Sword, which they carry for the following year until the next Festival.
Contents |
[edit] Results
[edit] List of winners
- 2001: Shinjiro Otani
- 2002: Shinjiro Otani
- 2003: Satoshi Kojima
- 2004: Kohei Sato
- 2005: Shinjiro Otani
- 2006: Masato Tanaka
- 2007: Masato Tanaka
[edit] 2001
The 2001 Fire Festival was held from September 1 to September 15, over three weekly events on September 1, 8 and 15; four tournament matches were held at each, including the finals on 9/15.
| Block A | Block B | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Shinjiro Otani | 6 | Kohei Sato | 4 |
| Horshu | 4 | Samoa Joe | 4 |
| Sean McCully | 2 | Masato Tanaka | 3 |
| Daisuke Sekimoto | 0 | George Takano | 1 |
| Block A | Horshu | Sean McCully | Shinjiro Otani | Daisuke Sekimoto |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horshu | X | Horshu (Forf) | Otani (8:32) | Horshu (4:53) |
| Sean McCully | Horshu (Forf) | X | Otani (3:08) | McCully (3:49) |
| Shinjiro Otani | Otani (8:32) | Otani (3:08) | X | Otani (11:29) |
| Daisuke Sekimoto | Horshu (4:53) | McCully (3:49) | Otani (11:29) | X |
| Block B | Kohei Sato | Samoa Joe | George Takano | Masato Tanaka |
| Kohei Sato | X | Sato (8:25) | Sato (7:21) | Tanaka (8:56) |
| Samoa Joe | Sato (8:25) | X | Joe (5:24) | Joe (8:00) |
| George Takano | Sato (7:21) | Joe (5:24) | X | Draw (9:28) |
| Masato Tanaka | Tanaka (8:56) | Joe (8:00) | Draw (9:28) | X |
| Final | |||
| A1 | Shinjiro Otani | Sub | |
| B1 | Kohei Sato | 13:05 | |
[edit] 2002
The 2002 Fire Festival expanded the tournament to include 10 participants, and was held from July 28 to August 4 over five shows, each featuring four tournament matches.
| Block A | Block B | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Shinjiro Otani | 6 | Tetsuhiro Kuroda | 6 |
| Masato Tanaka | 5 | Yuki Ishikawa | 4 |
| TAKA Michinoku | 4 | Steve Corino | 4 |
| Kintaro Kanemura | 3 | Hirotaka Yokoi | 4 |
| King Joe | 2 | Kohei Sato | 2 |
| Block A | Kintaro Kanemura | King Joe | TAKA Michinoku | Shinjiro Otani | Masato Tanaka |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kintaro Kanemura | X | Joe (6:09) | Kanemura (9:55) | Otani (0:03) | Draw (15:49) |
| King Joe | Joe (6:09) | X | TAKA (6:38) | Otani (7:15) | Tanaka (9:24) |
| TAKA Michinoku | Kanemura (9:55) | TAKA (6:38) | X | Otani (15:11) | TAKA (7:57) |
| Shinjiro Otani | Otani (0:03) | Otani (7:15) | Otani (15:11) | X | Tanaka (14:06) |
| Masato Tanaka | Draw (15:49) | Tanaka (9:24) | TAKA (7:57) | Tanaka (14:06) | X |
| Block B | Steve Corino | Yuki Ishikawa | Tetsuhiro Kuroda | Kohei Sato | Hirotaka Yokoi |
| Steve Corino | X | Ishikawa (9:02) | Kuroda (9:46) | Corino (9:56) | Corino (7:17) |
| Yuki Ishikawa | Ishikawa (9:02) | X | Kuroda (11:52) | Sato (6:53) | Ishikawa (8:43) |
| Tetsuhiro Kuroda | Kuroda (9:46) | Kuroda (11:52) | X | Kuroda (7:42) | Yokoi (8:45) |
| Kohei Sato | Corino (9:56) | Sato (6:53) | Kuroda (7:42) | X | Yokoi (7:02) |
| Hirotaka Yokoi | Corino (7:17) | Ishikawa (8:43) | Yokoi (8:45) | Yokoi (7:02) | X |
| Final | |||
| A1 | Shinjiro Otani | Pin | |
| B1 | Tetsuhiro Kuroda | 17:53 | |
[edit] 2003
The 2003 Fire Festival was held from July 25 to August 1, with four matches on July 27 being contested in All Japan Pro Wrestling. The winner, Satoshi Kojima, is to date the only "outsider" to win the Fire Festival, representing AJPW.
| Block A | Block B | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Shinjiro Otani | 5 | Satoshi Kojima | 6 |
| Arashi | 4 | Masato Tanaka | 5 |
| Hirotaka Yokoi | 4 | Tetsuhiro Kuroda | 4 |
| Kintaro Kanemura | 4 | Alexander Otsuka | 3 |
| Yoshiaki Fujiwara | 3 | Kohei Sato | 2 |
| Block A | Arashi | Yoshiaki Fujiwara | Kintaro Kanemura | Shinjiro Otani | Hirotaka Yokoi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arashi | X | Fujiwara (5:01) | Kanemura (4:50) | Arashi (14:53) | Arashi (9:24) |
| Yoshiaki Fujiwara | Fujiwara (5:01) | X | Kanemura (7:54) | Draw (11:24) | Yokoi (6:51) |
| Kintaro Kanemura | Kanemura (4:50) | Kanemura (7:54) | X | Otani (10:38) | Yokoi (7:21) |
| Shinjiro Otani | Arashi (14:53) | Draw (11:24) | Otani (10:38) | X | Otani (6:48) |
| Hirotaka Yokoi | Arashi (9:24) | Yokoi (6:51) | Yokoi (7:21) | Otani (6:48) | X |
| Block B | Satoshi Kojima | Tetsuhiro Kuroda | Alexander Otsuka | Kohei Sato | Masato Tanaka |
| Satoshi Kojima | X | Kojima (12:52) | Otsuka (12:46) | Kojima (12:34) | Kojima (26:05) |
| Tetsuhiro Kuroda | Kojima (12:52) | X | Kuroda (9:03) | Kuroda (10:36) | Tanaka (8:07) |
| Alexander Otsuka | Otsuka (12:46) | Kuroda (9:03) | X | Sato (7:51) | Draw (9:18) |
| Kohei Sato | Kojima (12:34) | Kuroda (10:36) | Sato (7:51) | X | Tanaka (11:57) |
| Masato Tanaka | Kojima (26:05) | Tanaka (8:07) | Draw (9:18) | Tanaka (11:57) | X |
| Final | |||
| A1 | Shinjiro Otani | Pin | |
| B1 | Satoshi Kojima | 20:19 | |
[edit] 2004
The 2004 Fire Festival was held from July 27 to August 1, over five shows.
| Block A | Block B | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Takao Omori | 5 | Kohei Sato | 6 |
| Satoshi Kojima | 5 | Shiro Koshinaka | 5 |
| Wataru Sakata | 4 | Shinjiro Otani | 4 |
| Hirotaka Yokoi | 3 | Kintaro Kanemura | 3 |
| Tetsuhiro Kuroda | 3 | Masato Tanaka | 2 |
| Block A | Satoshi Kojima | Tetsuhiro Kuroda | Takao Omori | Wataru Sakata | Hirotaka Yokoi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Satoshi Kojima | X | Draw (13:02) | Omori (19:06) | Kojima (14:52) | Kojima (14:35) |
| Tetsuhiro Kuroda | Draw (13:02) | X | Kuroda (11:16) | Sakata (15:10) | Yokoi (11:10) |
| Takao Omori | Omori (19:06) | Kuroda (11:16) | X | Omori (7:17) | Draw (30:00) |
| Wataru Sakata | Kojima (14:52) | Sakata (15:10) | Omori (7:17) | X | Sakata (9:50) |
| Hirotaka Yokoi | Kojima (14:35) | Yokoi (11:10) | Draw (30:00) | Sakata (9:50) | X |
| Block B | Kintaro Kanemura | Shiro Koshinaka | Shinjiro Otani | Kohei Sato | Masato Tanaka |
| Kintaro Kanemura | X | Draw (5:34) | Kanemura (1:18) | Sato (9:14) | Tanaka (11:07) |
| Shiro Koshinaka | Draw (5:34) | X | Otani (10:56) | Koshinaka (8:32) | Koshinaka (Forf) |
| Shinjiro Otani | Kanemura (1:18) | Otani (10:56) | X | Sato (17:32) | Otani (Forf) |
| Kohei Sato | Sato (9:14) | Koshinaka (8:32) | Sato (17:32) | X | Sato (Forf) |
| Masato Tanaka | Tanaka (11:07) | Koshinaka (Forf) | Otani (Forf) | Sato (Forf) | X |
| Final | |||
| A1 | Takao Omori | Pin | |
| B1 | Kohei Sato | 22:04 | |
[edit] 2005
The 2005 Fire Festival was held from July 29 to August 7, over five shows.
| Block A | Block B | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Shinjiro Otani | 5 | Kensuke Sasaki | 6 |
| Tadao Yasuda | 4 | Hirotaka Yokoi | 4 |
| Masato Tanaka | 4 | Takao Omori | 4 |
| Daisuke Ikeda | 4 | Chris the Bambikiller | 4 |
| Kohei Sato | 3 | Ryouji Sai | 3 |
| Block A | Daisuke Ikeda | Shinjiro Otani | Kohei Sato | Masato Tanaka | Tadao Yasuda |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daisuke Ikeda | X | Draw (30:00) | Draw (6:50) | Tanaka (9:03) | Ikeda (5:57) |
| Shinjiro Otani | Draw (30:00) | X | Otani (13:39) | Tanaka (17:11) | Otani (10:49) |
| Kohei Sato | Draw (6:50) | Otani (13:39) | X | Sato (12:47) | Yasuda (7:18) |
| Masato Tanaka | Tanaka (9:03) | Tanaka (17:11) | Sato (12:47) | X | Yasuda (7:46) |
| Tadao Yasuda | Ikeda (5:57) | Otani (10:49) | Yasuda (7:18) | Yasuda (7:46) | X |
| Block B | Chris the Bambikiller |
Takao Omori | Ryouji Sai | Kensuke Sasaki | Hirotaka Yokoi |
| Chris the Bambikiller |
X | Omori (8:03) | Chris (14:13) | Chris (7:46) | Yokoi (10:46) |
| Takao Omori | Omori (8:03) | X | Omori (20:03) | Sasaki (22:51) | Yokoi (6:15) |
| Ryouji Sai | Chris (14:13) | Omori (20:03) | X | Sasaki (12:06) | Sai (11:41) |
| Kensuke Sasaki | Chris (7:46) | Sasaki (22:51) | Sasaki (12:06) | X | Sasaki (10:44) |
| Hirotaka Yokoi | Yokoi (10:46) | Yokoi (6:15) | Sai (11:41) | Sasaki (10:44) | X |
| Final | |||
| A1 | Shinjiro Otani | Pin | |
| B1 | Kensuke Sasaki | 20:00 | |
[edit] 2006
The 2006 Fire Festival was held from July 20 to July 29, over six shows. Due to a tie for first place in Block A, a four-way elimination match was made on the night of the finals to determine the winner of the block, with that man facing Block B winner Ryouji Sai later in the night. This would end up being Masato Tanaka, who also went on to defeat Sai and win the tournament. The top 4 in Block A are ranked below by order of elimination, with the first eliminated, Kazunari Murakami, ranked lowest.
| Block A | Block B | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Masato Tanaka | 5 | Ryouji Sai | 6 |
| Yutaka Yoshie | 5 | Takao Omori | 5 |
| Shinjiro Otani | 5 | Tatsutoshi Goto | 4 |
| Kazunari Murakami | 5 | Kohei Sato | 3 |
| Tomoaki Honma | 0 | Daisuke Sekimoto | 2 |
| Block A | Tomoaki Honma | Kazunari Murakami | Shinjiro Otani | Masato Tanaka | Yutaka Yoshie |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tomoaki Honma | X | Murakami (5:58) | Otani (11:57) | Tanaka (11:08) | Yoshie (10:41) |
| Kazunari Murakami | Murakami (5:58) | X | Murakami (9:15) | Tanaka (8:23) | Draw (11:18) |
| Shinjiro Otani | Otani (11:57) | Murakami (9:15) | X | Draw (30:00) | Otani (10:18) |
| Masato Tanaka | Tanaka (11:08) | Tanaka (8:23) | Draw (30:00) | X | Yoshie (11:27) |
| Yutaka Yoshie | Yoshie (10:41) | Draw (11:18) | Otani (10:18) | Yoshie (11:27) | X |
| Block B | Tatsutoshi Goto | Takao Omori | Ryouji Sai | Kohei Sato | Daisuke Sekimoto |
| Tatsutoshi Goto | X | Omori (7:29) | Goto (7:44) | Sato (6:42) | Goto (9:40) |
| Takao Omori | Omori (7:29) | X | Sai (14:20) | Draw (30:00) | Omori (11:50) |
| Ryouji Sai | Goto (7:44) | Sai (14:20) | X | Sai (12:18) | Sai (14:14) |
| Kohei Sato | Sato (6:42) | Draw (30:00) | Sai (12:18) | X | Sekimoto (14:06) |
| Daisuke Sekimoto | Goto (9:40) | Omori (11:50) | Sai (14:14) | Sekimoto (14:06) | X |
| Final | |||
| A1 | Masato Tanaka | Pin | |
| B1 | Ryouji Sai | 23:00 | |
[edit] 2007
The 2007 Fire Festival, currently underway, will be held from July 16 to August 2, over nine shows. Four of the ten participants were determined by each winning a qualifying match on May 27. Four more were determined by fan voting, and the final two were outsiders handpicked by ZERO1-MAX. On July 20, it was announced that Ikuto Hidaka would be replacing Kazunari Murakami, who was forced out of action after just one match due to a head injury, due to finishing in fifth place in the fan vote. In a similar situation to the 2006 tournament, Block A ended in a full tie with four points, leading to a five-way match on August 2 to determine the finalist. The participants and schedule are as follows:
| Block A | Block B | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ryouji Sai | 4 | Masato Tanaka | 7 |
| Ikuto Hidaka | 4 | Kohei Sato | 6 |
| Shinjiro Otani | 4 | Daisuke Sekimoto | 3 |
| Yutaka Yoshie | 4 | Yoshihito Sasaki | 2 |
| Akitoshi Saito | 4 | Takao Omori | 2 |
| Block A | Ikuto Hidaka | Shinjiro Otani | Ryouji Sai | Akitoshi Saito | Yutaka Yoshie |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ikuto Hidaka | X | Draw (14:22)1 | Sai (13:34) | Draw (12:08) | Hidaka (12:25) |
| Shinjiro Otani | Draw (14:22)1 | X | Sai (14:22) | Otani (11:55) | Draw (30:00) |
| Ryouji Sai | Sai (13:34) | Sai (14:22) | X | Saito (14:16) | Yoshie (14:29) |
| Akitoshi Saito | Draw (12:08) | Otani (11:55) | Saito (14:16) | X | Draw (30:00) |
| Yutaka Yoshie | Hidaka (12:25) | Draw (30:00) | Yoshie (14:29) | Draw (30:00) | X |
| Block A | Takao Omori | Yoshihito Sasaki | Kohei Sato | Daisuke Sekimoto | Masato Tanaka |
| Takao Omori | X | Sasaki (8:40) | Sato (15:21) | Omori (16:11) | Tanaka (14:57) |
| Yoshihito Sasaki | Sasaki (8:40) | X | Sato (12:11) | Sekimoto (15:25) | Tanaka (14:39) |
| Kohei Sato | Sato (15:21) | Sato (12:11) | X | Sato (12:30) | Tanaka (12:05) |
| Daisuke Sekimoto | Omori (16:11) | Sekimoto (15:25) | Sato (12:30) | X | Draw (30:00) |
| Masato Tanaka | Tanaka (14:57) | Tanaka (14:39) | Tanaka (12:05) | Draw (30:00) | X |
| Finals | |||
| A1 | Ryouji Sai | Pin | |
| B1 | Masato Tanaka | 23:52 | |
1Kazunari Murakami wrestled this match; Hidaka was awarded the point upon replacing Murakami.
